Big Fan (2009)

The insanity of sports fandom comes to a head with this movie. This dark dramedy is helped a lot by the presence of a lesser known actor. A big name would not have been able to pull this off.

Patton Oswalt plays Paul. He's a thirtysomething who still lives at home with his mother and has a job that barely gives him enough money to put gas in his car. He's also a HUGE Giants fan. Him and his best friend Sal (Kevin Corrigan) tailgate at the games and watch them from the parking lot. Devotion knows no bounds, except ticket prices. One weeknight, the two see their favorite Giant, Quantrell Bishop, out on the town. They follow him to a strip club where, through some misunderstandings, Bishop pummels the crap out of Paul. After being laid up, Paul is questioned from all sides but doesn't give out answers. He's not sure if he should punish the man who did this to him because that would hurt the team that he loves. The public's on one side, his family's on the other, and he's stuck in the middle.

Oswalt was great. I was surprised as I'm sure everyone was who saw this. He had enough comedy and drama in the role to bring a sense of realism to the movie. You felt torn because he felt torn. What also helped is that this feels like it could really happen. There are superfans out there who are nuts for athletes and their teams. Might be hard to find, but go and watch this movie.